Protecting Him
by Kaliya22
Summary: Kate protects the one she loves.


_Disclaimer – They don't belong to me!_

_Author's note: A non-smut story with these two, a first for me! Just a little idea I got one day. I do have a couple of other ideas in the works also, hopefully two more smut stories soon!_

She didn't think about it when she did it.

It was her previous training as a Secret Service agent that caused her to automatically move between the bullet and him.

He wasn't the President. But he was her boss, and she'd die for him.

The bullet tore into her left shoulder, spinning her around so that she fell face first onto the concrete.

Through the haze of pain she heard shouting and more gunfire. And then once the gunfire was done, she heard running footsteps. Hands grasped her shoulders and she flinched, crying out.

"Kate!" His voice. His hands. Turning her over, cradling her in his arms.

"She's losing a lot of blood, boss." Tony's voice, on her other side. She wanted to reply but couldn't seem to find a teasing remark in her slow moving brain.

"I see that, DiNozzo, now go find the damn ambulance!" She heard Tony's footsteps moving away. A sharp tearing sound followed. And then fire in her shoulder as he applied pressure to her wound. She whimpered, trying to squirm away, but he held her tight.

"Hang in there Kate, you'll be ok, I promise." A soft touch of his lips on her forehead followed those words. She stilled, and forced her eyes open.

"Gibbs," she said, her voice a mere whisper. She couldn't quite tell in the haze of pain but she thought she saw tears in his eyes.

"Shh, don't talk Kate, save your energy."

She shivered suddenly, and tried to curl into him for warmth. Once that first shiver coursed through her, she couldn't stop shivering, and it just got worse. Almost violent tremors racked her body.

She heard a siren speeding towards them. It stopped and she heard more footsteps and the rattle of stretcher wheels on concrete.

She half listened while Gibbs explained what happened, watching through half closed eyes as they EMT's lowered the stretcher to the ground and pulled out equipment.

Then they tried to pull her away from him. She cried out, in pain and fear, grasping tightly at Gibbs. She heard him say something, low and urgent. The EMT's backed off and she relaxed a tad. Then Gibbs lifted her and placed her gently on the stretcher. The EMT's immediately moved in, hooking her up to an IV, checking her stats, putting an oxygen mask on her face. She knocked the mask off, crying out Gibbs' name softly.

He was there instantly. He wrapped his hands, both of them, around her hand, leaning down close to her. "I'm here Caitlin, and I'm not going to leave you. You're fine, but you have to let the EMT's do their job, ok?"

She tried to reply, but instead slipped into a cool endless blackness.

It was quite some time later when she blinked her eyes open. She flinched at the bright light coming into the room, and turned her head away from it.

"Kate. Oh, Kate, thank god you're awake."

Kate blinked away the tears caused by the bright lights to see Abby sitting next to the bed. The forensic expert leaned forward and kissed Kate on the forehead.

"We've been so worried. And Gibbs! Kate, you wouldn't believe how he's been! One minute, he's worse than his normal self, snapping at everyone! And the next he's offering to go get coffee and Caf-Pows."

Kate swallowed, trying to figure out why Gibbs would worry so much over a simple gunshot wound. She asked Abby.

"Simple? Kate, you've been unconscious for three days. Gibbs has been sick with worry, we all have."

"Wait, three days? What... why?"

"You lost a lot of blood at the scene. Your body went into a severe shock and then a coma. But, now you're back!" Abby grinned at her, clearly trying to stay positive. "Oh, and the doctors say your arm will be just fine after therapy."

Abby noticed Kate's eyes flicker to the door behind her and turned in the chair.

"Hey Gibbs," said Abby softly.

Gibbs stood just inside the door, coffee in hand. He met Abby's eyes.

"Give us a minute Abs?" he asked.

"Sure thing," Abby replied. She turned back to Kate. "See you later Kate."

"Bye Abby," Kate replied, giving her friend a small smile.

As soon as Abby was gone, Gibbs settled into the chair she had vacated. His piercing blue eyes bore straight into Kate's.

"If you ever do that again I will shoot you myself," he said, his voice low and angry.

"Fine, next time I'll just let the bullet kill you," she replied sharply, feeling the tears sting at her eyes.

"I had a vest on Caitlin."

"And the bullet was aimed at your head, Jethro," she said, using his first name on purpose. She tried to turn away from him, but as he was on her right side, she couldn't. So she laid on her back, blinking furiously, angry at him and at the tears that escaped down her cheeks.

Suddenly, his breath was warm on her cheek and ear as he whispered, "I'd rather be dead than lose you Kate."

She froze, and the heart monitor beeped quietly as it registered her change in pulse. She turned back towards him. Her eyes searched his for a long time. He stayed still and silent, waiting.

"Why do you think I jumped in front of the bullet, Jethro?" she asked softly.

She watched the surprise in his eyes, and then he smiled and leaned over, capturing her lips in a sweet kiss.


End file.
